Chrysanthemum plant named Yellow Sandy

ABSTRACT

A Chrysanthemum plant named Yellow Sandy particularly characterized by its flat capitulum form; daisy capitulum type; yellow ray floret color; diameter across face of capitulum of 63 to 73 mm when fully opened; branching pattern is spreading and prolific, with 7 to 9 breaks after pinch when grown outside under natural daylength in fall flowerings, and 5 to 7 breaks after pinch when grown in 10 cm pots for spring flowerings; natural season flower date of August 20 when planting rooted cuttings on June 25 in Salinas, Calif., and September 19 to October 4 when planting rooted cuttings June 15 in Hightstown, N.J.; flowering response of 45 to 49 days after rooting in no light/no shade programs in spring; plant height of 30 to 35 cm when grown in fall under natural daylength with no growth regulators, and 13 to 18 cm when grown in 10 cm pots in spring with 1 application of 2500 ppm B-9 SP; and durable, uniform performance.

The present invention comprises a new and distinct cultivar ofChrysanthemum, botanically known as Dendranthema grandiflora, andreferred to by the cultivar name Yellow Sandy.

Yellow Sandy, identified as 86-488B01, is a product of a mutationinduction program. The new cultivar was discovered and selected byCornelis P. VandenBerg on Nov. 13, 1989, in a controlled environment inSalinas, Calif. as one flowering plant within a flowering blockestablished as rooted cuttings from stock plants which had been exposedas unrooted cuttings to an X-ray source of 1750 rads in Fort Myers, Fla.on May 25, 1989. The irradiated parent cultivar was the cultivaridentified as Sandy, disclosed in U.S. Plant Pat. No. 7,531. Sandy isdescribed as a flat daisy spray pot mum and garden mum with a softhoney-bronze ray floret color; diameter across face of capitulum of 63to 73 mm when fully opened; spreading and prolific branching pattern,with 7 to 10 branches after pinch; average natural season flower date ofAugust 20 to 28 in Salinas, Calif. and September 20 to October 1 inHightstown, N.J.; photoperiodic flowering response to short days inphotoperiodic controlled flowering programs of 45 to 49 days; anddurable, uniform performance. The above description of Sandy has a widerrange of values than disclosed in U.S. Plant Pat. No. 7,531 for Sandy,based on continued flower trials after the application for Sandy wasfiled.

The irradiation program resulting in Yellow Sandy had as its primaryobjective the expansion of color ranges of the parent cultivar Sandy.The irradiation program comprised irradiating cuttings of the parentcultivar at irradiation levels of 1500, 1750 and 2000 rads. A total of1180 cuttings harvested from a total of 225 irradiated plants wereplanted on Sep. 11, Sep. 4 and Aug. 21, 1989, respectively. Of these 11initial selections were made, which selections were then revegetated andreflowered. Four consecutive flowerings resulted in discarding 8 of theoriginal 11 selections on Aug. 29, 1990. Three selections weremaintained as PIs (Possible Introductions) and trialed for one year,ultimately resulting in discarding two of these three remainingselections on Sep. 23, 1991, and the decision to introduce the oneremaining selection as Yellow Sandy.

The first act of asexual reproduction of Yellow Sandy was accomplishedwhen vegetative cuttings were taken from the initial selection inDecember 1989 in a controlled environment in Salinas, Calif., bytechnicians working under supervision of Cornelis P. VandenBerg.

Horticultural examination of controlled flowerings of successiveplantings has shown that the unique combination of characteristics asherein disclosed for Yellow Sandy are firmly fixed and are retainedthrough successive generations of asexual reproduction.

Yellow Sandy has not been observed under all possible environmentalconditions. The phenotype may vary significantly with variations inenvironment such as temperature, light intensity and daylength, without,however, any variance in genotype.

The following observations, measurements and comparisons describe plantsgrown in controlled open areas in Salinas, Calif., and in Hightstown,N.J. Rooted cuttings were established in soil and maintained outdoorsunder the natural temperature and daylength prevailing during Junethrough October. Spring flowerings were conducted in Salinas, Calif.under greenhouse conditions which approximate those generally used incommercial practice for small pot spring garden mum production.

The following traits have been repeatedly observed and are determined tobe basic characteristics of Yellow Sandy, which, in combination,distinguish this Chrysanthemum as a new and distinct cultvar:

1. Flat capitulum form.

2. Daisy capitulum type.

3. Yellow ray floret color.

4. Diameter across face of capitulum of 63 to 73 mm when fully opened.

5. Branching pattern is spreading and prolific, with 7 to 9 breaks afterpinch when grown outside under natural daylength in fall flowerings, and5 to 7 breaks after pinch when grown in 10 cm pots for springflowerings.

6. Natural season flower date of August 20 when planting rooted cuttingson June 25 in Salinas, Calif., and September 19 to October 4 whenplanting rooted cuttings June 15 in Hightstown, N.J.

7. Flowering response of 45 to 49 days after rooting in no light/noshade programs in spring.

8. Plant height of 30 to 35 cm when grown in fall under naturaldaylength with no growth regulators, and 13 to 18 cm when grown in 10 cmpots in spring with 1 application of 2500 ppm B-9 SP.

9. Durable, uniform performance.

The accompanying photographic drawing is a color photograph of YellowSandy Grown as a pinched garden mum under natural outside conditions inSalinas, Calif., with the colors being as nearly true as possible withillustrations of this type.

Of the commercial cultivars shown to the inventor, the most similar incomparison to Yellow Sandy is the parent cultivar Sandy. Most traits ofYellow Sandy are similar to those of Sandy, except for the ray floretcolor. The ray floret color of Yellow Sandy is yellow, while the rayfloret color of Sandy is a soft honey-bronze. In addition, Yellow Sandyis 2 to 4 days slower in natural season flowerings when compared withSandy.

In the following description color references are made to The RoyalHorticultural Society Colour Chart. The color values were determined onplant material grown as a pinched garden mum grown under natural seasonoutside conditions in Salinas, Calif. on Aug. 25, 1992.

CLASSIFICATION

Botanical.--Dendranthema grandiflora cv Yellow Sandy.

Commercial.--Flat daisy spray pot mum and garden mum.

INFLORESCENCE

A. Capitulum:

Form.--Flat.

Type.--Daisy.

Diameter across face.--63 to 73 mm when fully opened.

B. Corolla of ray florets:

Color (general tonality from a distance of three meters).--Yellow.

Color (upper surface).--5A.

Color (under surface).--5A.

Shape.--Flat, straight, oblong.

C. Corolla of disc florets:

Color (mature).--14A.

Color (immature).--Closest to 14B, slightly tinged with 151A.

D. Reproductive organs:

Androecium.--Present on disc florets only; moderate pollen.

Gynoecium.--Present on both ray and disc florets.

PLANT

A. General appearance:

Height.--30 to 35 cm when grown in fall under natural daylength with nogrowth regulators, and 13 to 18 cm when grown in 10 cm pots in springwith 1 application of 2500 ppm B-9 SP.

Branching pattern.--Spreading and prolific, with 7 to 9 breaks afterpinch when grown outside under natural daylength in fall flowerings, and5 to 7 breaks after pinch when grown in 10 cm pots for springflowerings.

B. Foliage:

Color (upper surface).--147A.

Color (under surface).--147B.

Shape.--See photograph.

I claim:
 1. A new and distinct Chrysanthemum plant named Yellow Sandy,as described and illustrated.